


The Darkness Awakens

by ThePlatinumAge



Series: Star Wars - The Road to Legacy [1]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Legends - All Media Types
Genre: F/F, F/M, Post-Crucible
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-05
Updated: 2021-01-08
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:46:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 9,502
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24026833
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThePlatinumAge/pseuds/ThePlatinumAge
Summary: In the aftermath of the chaos wrought by Abeloth and the Lost Tribe of the Sith, a terrorist organization called the First Order calls for revolution against the ineffectual Galactic Alliance and the stagnating Imperial Remnant, while a greater threat looms within the Unknown Regions.
Relationships: Jagged Fel/Jaina Solo, Vestara Khai/Ben Skywalker
Series: Star Wars - The Road to Legacy [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1733191
Comments: 25
Kudos: 16





	1. Prologue

**A long time ago**   
**in a galaxy far, far away...**

  
**Unrest is stirring in the galaxy. Following the ostracization of Luke Skywalker's NEW JEDI ORDER from the Galactic Alliance, the Alliance's weak government finds itself overwhelmed by a series of terrorist attacks. On Bastion, the IMPERIAL REMNANT slowly rebuilds itself while opportunists plot to take over.**   
**After the defeat of the monstrous Abeloth and the discovery of her mysterious origins on Mortis, Skywalker has dispatched multiple Jedi in search of the mystical Mortis Monolith. But as the Jedi scatter across the galaxy, a new threat reveals itself in the Outer Rim....**

-  
 _Aborah. 50 years before the Battle of Yavin_

Darth Plagueis looked at the monitors in front of him. After 17 years, his Bith test subject still remained alive, the Force somehow forcing him to endure. His droid servant, 11-4D, appeared with a stack of old books.

"Master Damask, I have recovered the texts you sent me to retrieve on Dromund Kaas."

Plagueis eagerly took the books off of him and began reading.

"The ancient texts of the Sith Emperor Vitiate. You have done well."

His voice boomed through the vocoder in his mask as he spoke. The texts spoke of ancient techniques similar to the ones Darth Bane and Zannah had described, essence transfer and such, but nothing much more. Nothing that would help him achieve true immortality, certainly. The closest was Darth Drear's ritual, which had ultimately killed him and, a millennia later, Darth Scabrous and his entire Sith Academy as well, turning them into undead cannibalistic monstrosities. Another was Lord Vitiate's own ritual, which had come at the cost of constant pain and the death of an entire planet.  
One thing caught his eye, though. A mention of the Ones. Force-wielders of immense god-like power, said to be linked to the Celestials. There was a family. The Father, The Son and The Daughter. And there was one other. The text had originally said The Mother, but someone had scratched over it and written _Abeloth_ instead. Potentially, their power could transcend the laws of time and space. Their very being was a physical manifestation of the Force itself. They lived within something called the Mortis Monolith.

As he read on, he found no further mention of them so he eventually discarded the text and turned his attention back to Venamis' vital signs. He was still convinced that the answers to the Force could be found through science instead of old sorcery.

-

_Serenno, 23 years before the Battle of Yavin.  
_

Count Dooku retreated to his private chambers. He'd recently formed the Confederacy of Independent Systems and announced to the Senate that all its member worlds would be leaving the Republic. Soon, the Trade Federation, the Corporate Alliance and the Commerce Guild would sign his treaties and pledge their droid armies to him. Every part of his master's plan was falling into place. Now, alone in his chambers, he could abandon his false persona and assume his true identity, that of the Sith Lord Darth Tyranus.

Tyranus sat in a meditative position and picked up the ancient artefact he'd stolen from the Jedi Archives before he left the Order, the Sith Holocron.  
Hours passed as he absorbed the information hidden within the holocron. The Sith's origins on Korriban and Ziost, the Great Hyperspace War, the rise of Emperor Vitiate and his attack on the Old Republic.

He read of the legendary Jedi Revan, who had somehow returned to the light after being Vitiate's puppet for years. Yet, during his time as a Sith, he had recorded a lot of wisdom that proved integral in Darth Bane's philosophy, including the fundamentals of the Rule of Two. Revan had disappeared shortly after defeating his former friend, the Sith Lord Darth Malak, and some believed that he challenged the Emperor himself, postponing the Sith Empire's invasion by 300 years. All this, Tyranus memorized.

He learned of the Sith's apparent destruction on Ruusan a millennia before, how a single survivor called Darth Bane had created the Rule of Two. A few snippets caught his interest more than the others, though. The mention of the Ones and Abeloth and how it took the Ones and an army of Killiks to imprison her. The idea that the Ones could still be out there...  
Another thing that caught his attention was the mention of the Force being able to affect the very fabric of time itself. He knew that he could see visions of the past and the future, but to actually affect time itself...


	2. Chapter 2

_Coruscant, Galactic Alliance military HQ. 43 years after the Battle of Yavin._

Syal Antilles watched the holo-broadcast with a frown. First Valin Horn went crazy, now Jysella. And the press was making sure to destroy the little faith people had left in them and in the Jedi.

Syal hated this. She'd grown up with the Horn siblings, they were practically family, as all of them were children of two famous Rogue Squadron members. Now one of them was retired and the other a Jedi Master and Rogue Squadron was no more.

She looked around in the almost empty hangar. No one there but her and some people she didn't recognize. A young woman only a few years older than her, a chubby man with a goatee around her age and a young man with dark eyes and smooth black hair. His skin tone suggested he was from the Outer Rim. He was far younger than anyone else there, barely out of his teens.

Her eyes darted back to the chubby man. He looked familiar. Could it be?

"Snap?"

The man turned to look at her and smiled.

"Syal? Is it really you? Wow, I haven't seen you since I moved to Akiva!"

She ran over to hug him, smiling widely. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all. Temmin 'Snap' Wexley was the son of two heroes of the New Republic. His father had been killed in the Yuuzhan Vong war and his mother Norra had spent most of her time flying for the New Republic, both before, during and after the war. During that time, Snap had basically been Syal and Miri's foster brother. Syal's father, Wedge, had also revealed that back in the old Rebel Alliance days, he and Norra had even had a brief romance, which had died fairly quickly. Regardless, Syal saw Snap as the perfect older brother and knowing that she'd be flying with him made her very happy.

She immediately snapped to attention when Admiral Gavin Darklighter walked in, as did the others.

"At ease," Darklighter said, just as an interview with Chief of State Daala came over the HoloNet.

"Will someone shut that kriffing thing off? I can't stand that witch." ( _Bitch_ was the word Syal would've preferred to use, though she did not say so.)  
Darklighter went on.

"As you know, when I was your age, I was the leader of Rogue Squadron. As most of you are also aware, it was initially founded by Luke Skywalker and Wedge Antilles." Syal felt all the eyes in the room on her and blushed a little, looking down to hide her embarrassment.

"Two years ago, Rogue Squadron was disbanded by Colonel Jacen Solo. He went to the Dark Side, became a Sith Lord called Darth Caedus, yadda yadda yadda, you know the story. Anyways, the power vacuum he left enabled Daala to take charge and with the way she's been acting lately, it seems another civil war is inevitable."

All the pilots in the room visibly gulped, suspecting what he might say next.

"No, I am not suggesting anything treasonous. Not yet, at any rate. However, the Jedi must have backup should they ever require it. Therefore, I am unofficially revamping Rogue Squadron."  
Darklighter looked at the other woman. "Jessika Pava. You're Rogue Four."

He looked at Snap. "Snap Wexley. I flew with your mother on a few missions. She was one of the best pilots I've ever seen and one of the bravest women I've ever met. I'm honored to make you Rogue Three."

He looked over at Syal and the teen. "Making this choice is very difficult. You've both proven yourselves to be great pilots. Courageous, skilled, caring."

He thought visibly for a moment before making a decision. "Poe Dameron, you're Rogue Two. Syal Antilles, you're Rogue Leader. Make your father proud."

* * *

_Corellia, 47 years after the Battle of Yavin_

Rogue Squadron was called in to back up a trio of Jedi Stealth-Xs chasing a squadron of modified TIE Fighters that had suddenly appeared out of nowhere and bombed a public shopping center. The markings on the solar panels showed they were neither from the Galactic Alliance nor the Imperial Remnant.

"Rogue Leader to all Rogues. The TIEs are splitting up. Remember to take them out quickly and efficiently. They have shown that they aren't afraid to kill civilians, so vape them if you have to, as they may attempt suicide diving."

Syal had noticed that after four years of leading the Rogues, she was starting to sound like her father.

"If you beat my score, drinks are on me," Rogue Two said.

"Oh, you're on, Dameron!" Syal replied and, as soon as she got in range, shot down five of the 14 fighters.

Dameron waited as he lined up his shot, only to have his kill stolen by one of the new recruits; Paige Tico, Rogue Six. A natural pilot, Paige had started out as a gunner on an old Y-Wing during the Second Civil War. At the time, she had been fighting against the Galactic Alliance, but that didn't matter much now. Like the Jedi, the Rogues were independent of any government, be it Corellia's Confederation, the Alliance or the Empire.

The Jedi quickly broke off their pursuit, clearly understanding that the Rogues had things well under control.

Within only half an hour, all 14 fighters had been shot down and the Rogues all returned to their hangar aboard the _Ackbar_. A Mon Cal cruiser, it had been named after the famous Mon Calamari Admiral Gial Ackbar of the Rebel Alliance and the New Republic.

Syal turned on the HoloNews as she took off her flight suit and watched the news anchors hurry to question the CorSec agents investigating the downed TIEs and the scene of their airstrike.  
Suddenly, the broadcast was hijacked and replaced with a red symbol, slightly similar to that of the Empire. A sun inside a hexagon. The same symbol that was painted on those TIE fighters. A deep, disguised voice spoke.

**"For too long, this galaxy has seen chaos and the pathetic Galactic Alliance has done nothing to stop it! The Yuuzhan Vong, the Swarm War, the recent Galactic Civil War, even the skirmish with the Jedi!**   
**"No more! We are the First Order, and we stand for a united galaxy! Down with the Galactic Alliance! Down with the false Empire! Unity through order, order through strength!"**


	3. Chapter 3

_Korriban_

She couldn't understand why Ship had brought her back here. Surely, these other Sith weren't hiding in the most obvious place in the galaxy. Then again, Korriban was the last place the Jedi would suspect because it was so obvious and had been long since abandoned. But hadn't they already gone there a few months ago and found nothing?

Vestara Khai contemplated her situation. She'd been flying for days on end and was completely exhausted, both mentally and physically. The events of the past weeks all flashed by when she closed her eyes. The battles with Abeloth, fighting the Jedi, fighting alongside the Jedi, betraying them to save her own worthless life...

That last thought was gnawing at her more than she would have expected it to. She was Sith, she'd been raised Sith, deceit was in her nature. So why was that particular betrayal causing so much guilt? Was it because she'd thrown a live thermal detonator in the direction of a nine year old child? Or was it because it had been Ben's family she'd attacked?

Ben... The memories all came flooding back. The guilt and the anger and the pain.  
 _That is good_ , Ship had said. _Pain makes Sith strong._

Ship landed inside an ancient hangar in one of the old temples. She could sense the Dark Side even more strongly now. They were expecting her.  
Hesitantly, she stepped out of eyeball-like vessel into the dark hangar. Noticing a glint of light coming from an open doorway, Vestara shrugged and walked through it, stepping into a dimly lit chamber.

There they were. About two dozens of robed Sith sitting in what appeared to be a parliament and sitting on a throne in the middle of the room was a man clad in an armor made from what appeared to be Krayt Dragon bones. His face was tattooed and he had mismatching eyes, one yellow and the other white. His graying black hair was tied into a single long braid.

"Step closer, Lady Khai."

 _They know my name!_ Vestara thought but did her best to keep her surprise hidden in the Force. Hesitantly, she stepped forward and the man got off his throne, walking closer to her. Instinctively, she kneeled.

"My Lord Krayt... When Ship informed me of you..."

Krayt smirked. "...You hoped you could join our ranks. The Sith Lady Vestara Khai, one of the last survivors of the Lost Tribe." He laughed softly and ran his fingers through her dark hair. "I will allow it, but only after you swear your loyalty."

She gulped and nodded, hoping the scar at the corner of her mouth giving her face a permanent sneer didn't cause him to mistake her resolve for defiance.

"I will do whatever I must... My lord."

A few days later, Vestara stood in front of the large mirror in her chambers. Her naked body was still glistening with water from the sanisteam she'd taken. Of course, the antiquated temple didn't even have a full sanisteam but an old-fashioned shower, but she made do. She'd had to make do with less during her training back on Kesh.

She glanced over her form, her pale skin and her face. Where she'd once had the symbols of the Lost Tribe painted on her face, she now had tattoos, many of which covered her entire body. Tattoos in the ancient Sith language. She wondered what her father would say about her now, a full-fledged Sith Lord living on Korriban. Then she wondered...

What would Ben think? The ache in her heart was still fresh. And did she really believe in Darth Krayt's One Sith Order, or the Sith in general? Her thoughts turned to the vision she had seen in the Pool of Knowledge. What her future self meant to Ben. She knew there was only one way to put an end to the pain.  
Stretching out her hand, she summoned her lightsaber to her hand and activated it, looking deep into the heart of the crimson blade.

_Nwûl tash._   
_Dzwol shâsotkun._   
_Shâsotjontû châtsatul nu tyûk._   
_Tyûkjontû châtsatul nu midwan._   
_Midwanjontû châtsatul nu asha._   
_Ashajontû kotswinot itsu nuyak._   
_Wonoksh Qyâsik nun._

She chanted in the ancient language of the Sith, though her Keshiri accent probably caused her pronunciation to waver from the way a modern Sith would pronounce it. Krayt had said as much when she swore her loyalty to him.

_Peace is a lie, there is only passion._   
_Through passion, I gain strength._   
_Through strength, I gain power._   
_Through power, I gain victory._   
_Through victory, my chains are broken._   
_The Force shall free me._

* * *

Vestara awoke with a start. It had been three years since Ship had taken her to Korriban. Three years since Krayt had sent her to work undercover for the Qreph brothers while she reported on their research. But what she'd found there, it disgusted her so much she would've left had they not tried to kill her first. But while there, she'd had another run in with Ben. Not a run in, per se, but they'd seen one another and he'd chased after her. It had brought all those repressed memories back. She'd escaped with the help of the Mandalorian warrior Mirta Gev, who'd helped her get to Ship.

After that, Vestara had left the One Sith behind. She didn't trust Krayt and after witnessing the power of the Crucible Monolith that the Qrephs had unlocked, the power Krayt wanted reports on, she'd decided that it would be best if no one discovered it. The last thing she wanted was another Abeloth.

Her decision had forced her to go on the run from Krayt and his spies, resorting to taking quick odd jobs in order to stay alive and never remaining in one spot for too long.

Now she lay on the bed in a cheap hotel room on Taris, sighing as she once again looked at her lightsaber. She could ditch it and try to find a new life. She'd been able to cover up her facial tattoos with makeup and synth skin, she could try the same with her scar and become a completely new person. But no. She was tired of running, tired of pretending.

_Lady Khai!_

"Ship?" Vestara straightened. "What is it?"

Ship seemed agitated through the mental link she shared with it. He'd seemed to be on edge ever since the first news of this strange First Order movement had come over the HoloNet.

_Can't you feel it? The Dark Side is growing stronger! The Sith are making their move!_

* * *

_Somewhere in the Zakuul System_

Ben Skywalker was stationed in the Unknown Regions and had been tasked with the mission to track down the Mortis monolith. For nearly three years, their search had proven fruitless. Nothing but rumors and whispers. Neither had there been any word of the person he'd been searching for all that time. The last time he'd seen her was aboard the Qreph brothers' Base Prime. That was almost two years ago. Since then, nothing.

Some of the Knights he'd been partnered with since then had thought of it as almost an obsession. All he seemed to think about was finding Vestara Khai and... And what? Kill her? Arrest her and bring her to justice for her betrayal of the Jedi? Once again try to turn her to the light? Ben didn't know what he'd do if...when...he encountered her again.

Once, he'd been in love with her. Now... He wasn't sure how he felt about her. Whenever he thought of her, he still felt that yearning in his heart, tugging against his anger towards her for her multiple betrayals.

Sighing, Ben pressed the recording button on his holocam and spoke up.

"This is Jedi Ben Skywalker with an update on the search for the Mortis Monolith. It's now day 745. I've searched all of Zakuul, Lehon, Zonamma Sekot and as much of Chiss space as the Chiss allowed me to check. Still nothing. Frankly, I’m about ready to give up at this point.”

He stopped the recording, played it back, and then transmitted it. It would take a few days for it to reach the Academy on Ossus, even with Hypercom technology there was only so fast one could send radio signals through space.

“So what’s the status of our food stores, R9?”, Ben asked his astromech co-pilot. The reply came in the series of beeps R-series astromechs were known for and the translation came up on his screen.

“What about fuel?” Another line of worried beeps and a rather lengthy text about needing to get to a civilized system soon for resupplies.

"We're due for a rendezvous with Jaina on Taris, do you think we can make it?" R9 answered in the affirmative and so Ben locked in the coordinates for Taris and made the jump to hyperspace, putting himself in a healing trance to conserve the need for food and oxygen.

* * *

_Bastion_

Imperial Head of State Vitor Reige sat in his office, dumbfounded by the recent news. For the last few weeks, riots and disorder had been sowed throughout the Empire's territories, all from Muunilinst, Dubrillion and Bilbringi to Taris, Fondor and even Bastion itself. According to the HoloNet, the same could be said about Galactic Alliance worlds like Coruscant, Kuat, Naboo and New Alderaan, and even neutral worlds like Onderon and Corellia.

In each case, the perpetrators identified themselves as the First Order. On Corellia and Onderon, they'd even brought to bear TIE fighters specifically painted and designed to their needs. Some of them were the new top of the line Special Forces TIEs that were supposed to have been kept under wraps in the Imperial foundries on Eadu.

Oh, how he missed Jagged Fel. Fel would know what to do. Where was the bastard, anyway? He hadn't heard anything from him since he announced the birth of his son a year earlier. Rumors placed him on Ossus, where the Jedi were said to be located, but rumors could be so unreliable.

"Bad time, sir?" Moff Brendol Hux asked as he stepped into Vitor's office. "Your secretary droid let me in."  
Hux had been Moff Lecersen's replacement, who had been forced to retire following the failed coup three years earlier. Lecersen himself had picked Hux for the role.

"Not at all. Come on in. Have some caf. I was just..." Vitor sighed and looked at the screen. "Have you heard about this First Order nonsense? It's been growing in frequency for the last few weeks.

Hux nodded. "Almost makes you wish for old man Sheev back. Say what you will about his methods, Palpatine knew how to keep his people in line."

"Don't even joke like that, Brendol. Palpatine may have been our Emperor, but he was a tyrant who abused his power too much, even by Imperial standards."

"True enough, and may he rot in his grave. But the question is, what good is an Empire without an emperor?"

"Our best candidate resigned and left me in charge," Vitor pointed out. Hux frowned and shook his head.

"I never cared for Jag Fel as Head of State. He was thrust into the role and spent his entire career trying to escape his responsibility. Besides, he had far too many ties to other governments. His family was important to the Chiss Ascendancy and his little girlfriend- -sorry, I meant wife- is a Jedi and up until recently, they were allied with the GA and they have never been friendly to the Empire."

"You have a son in the Imperial Navy, don't you?" Vitor shot in.

"I do. Armitage worked under you as an ensign aboard the _Pellaeon_ while you were still an admiral. He's lieutenant commander on the _Inferno_ now."

"Of course, I believe I've met him quite a few times. He's a good lad," Vitor said politely but Brendol scoffed.

"He's a pest. A sneering little bastard I would have sent away with his mother had she not died in childbirth. Oh, well, I suppose he's a Hux and he serves the Empire, so he's not a complete waste. At least the new admiral is keeping an eye on him."

Vitor felt a shiver running down his spine. "Aldritch Pryde? I don't trust him."

 _Of course not, you fool._ Hux thought. _You shouldn't._


	4. Chapter 4

_Ossus_

  
"How many times must I tell you, I'm fine!" Jaina Solo-Fel said, exasperated. She wasn't, of course. She was far from fine. She'd been forced to leave her Jedi duties for well over a year now to focus on that new, all-important mission. She hadn't slept in what felt like ages and it showed on her face. The being she was talking to, the lizard-like Master Saba Sebatyne, just stared at her with the Barabel approximation of a worried look.

"Massster Sssolo, thisss one is telling you, you need ressst. Let Jagged take care of him for while you get your much needed ressst. Thisss one knowsss what motherhood can be like."

"I know, Saba, I just... I don't want to put too much pressure on him," Jaina protested. "He's-"

"Does _he_ not get a say in this?" Jagged Fel asked with a smirk as he stepped into the room. "Master Sebatyne is right, you really should let me take care of him sometimes. He's my son too."

Jaina looked down at the toddler crawling on the floor, playing with a ball. Barely a year old, still so fragile. Jaina still couldn't believe she was a mother. She'd first discovered she was pregnant during a peace summit. The Jedi had been called in to act as an unbiased security force during important negiotations between the Hapes Consortium and Corellia. Jaina had been one of the Jedi on duty and had been standing guard in the room during the meeting when all of a sudden she'd started vomiting. Nine months later, she'd given birth to a baby boy with dark eyes and dark hair. She'd named him Jacen, after her late brother, and Jaina had viewed him as her chance at redemption for failing to save either of her brothers.

Now, little Jacen had picked up the ball and was violently bashing the nanny droid with it. Jaina couldn't help smiling as she watched her son and almost as if he felt her eyes on him, Jacen looked back at her and giggled.

Yes, she was tired. She needed a rest. She could almost understand her parents' reasoning for sending her and Jacen off to hide with Winter so often during their younger years. It wasn't just to keep them safe from the Empire, it was so they themselves could have a moment's rest. Jaina immediately hated herself for thinking that, but was extremely thankful for Jag offering to take over from her.

"You know what, Saba? You're right. I think I'll take your advice and go rest now. Give my love to the Council, will you?"

Saba sissed, the Barabel approximation of laughter. "Of courssse, Jaina. You take care of yourssself. Thisss one will deal with the Council."

_Good, because right now, I couldn't care less if the whole kriffing galaxy was on fire! I just need some sleep!_

* * *

_Space above Eadu, aboard the Imperial Resurgent-Class Star Destroyer **Inferno**_

Lieutenant Commander Armitage Hux looked disdainfully down on the technicians working at their stations. He knew full well that they resented him. Thought of him as a spoiled brat whose Moff father had pulled the strings to get him to a superior position at the age of 21. If they only knew how much he had sacrificed to get to this position. Thankfully, not everyone seemed to hate him. Vice Admiral Sloane didn't. Neither did General Gallius Rax, who actually seemed to treat Armitage better than his actual father did.

Unfortunately, Sloane was on leave and Rax was on mission on the planet below. So that just left...

"Status report, Lieutenant Commander."

Armitage frowned, but stood to attention. "The factories are operating at peak efficiency and the production of the new TIE squadrons is exceeding expectations."

The grave look on Admiral Pryde's mask of a face did not change to indicate any satisfaction to the report. Instead he merely looked at Armitage with disdain before walking away. He always did that. He could just as easily get the status report from Captain Canady or any other officer, but he always singled Armitage out to stare at him with those dead, hawk-like eyes. Armitage wanted nothing more than to gouge those eyes out of their sockets and squish them beneath his heel. But alas, he had to be patient. That was what Rax had told him. That was what he'd instructed Armitage to do when he helped him remove some of his higher ups to secure a promotion.

Armitage was no fool. He knew what those TIE squadrons were for. Rax wasn't loyal to the Empire any more than he, Pryde or any of the crew aboard the Inferno were. They were loyal to the ideals of the old Empire, but not this broken shell it had become. Once, there had been a conspiracy to overthrow both the then-Imperial Head of State Jagged Fel and the Galactic Alliance's then-Chief of State Natasi Daala and restore the Emperor with Moff Drikl Lecersen as Emperor and Senator Haydnat Treen as Grand Moff. The conspiracy had failed, as Lecersen had been captured by Daala and most of the co-conspirators in the GA had been arrested, except for Treen, who'd managed to escape to Kuat and kill off all loose ends. However, during a gala that involved too much liquor, her tongue had gotten looser and she'd revealed everything to the Imperial Remnant's General Gallius Rax and Moff Brendol Hux. Rather than expose her, Rax had gone home with her after the gala was over. The HoloNet news reports the following day claimed that the aged senator had committed suicide by slitting her wrists, but Armitage knew better. Rax then used his connections to secure a Star Destroyer's worth of loyal associates. Moff Hux had once been a commandant in an Imperial Academy on Bilbringi and still held considerable power there and it hadn't been long until they now had trained and loyal soldiers who believed in their cause. The first order of business had been to make their presence known in the galaxy.

How Gallius Rax came up with the idea of the First Order was anyone's guess, as was his story in the Imperial Army. Armitage had been able to find a rather lengthy record dating back decades, yet the man didn't seem to be much older than 40. Most of the record was redacted, even with his father's stolen clearance, but what wasn't seemed to indicate that Rax had been personally recruited to the Empire as a boy by Palpatine himself.


	5. Chapter 5

_The dark woman stands in front of the burning village. Her masked face observes the devastation and the Force radiates with satisfaction, if nothing else. The village disappears and is replaced by a tall man. His eyes are mismatched and his face is tattooed. It is the Dark Man from your dreams, the one you met Beyond Shadows. He beckons and the woman walks closer to him. The woman kneels in front of him and begins removing her helmet._

The vision ended before Luke could get a glimpse of her face. He did suspect who it was, though. Vestara Khai had been missing for two years and the Sith always flocked together eventually. The Lost Tribe was destroyed, its surviving remnants scattered across the Galaxy, but the Dark Man he'd met Beyond Shadows had had a purpose to him. _"Not yet. Abeloth first,"_ he'd told the Jedi who'd attempted to attack him while he observed the battle with the Lost Tribe after he'd disarmed them with ridiculous ease. After the defeat of Abeloth Beyond Shadows, the Dark Man had disappeared, but Luke was certain he'd show up again.

Unfortunately, as Luke reminded himself, he was Ben and Jaina's problem now. The little journey he, Han and Leia had gone on through the strange alternate dimension within the Crucible Monolith had taken a lot out of them all and reminded them just how old they really were. Luke was 66 years old now. Han was in his mid 70's. Where had the time gone? It seemed like only yesterday they were in their 20's fighting the Empire, constantly on some mission or another for the Rebel Alliance.

So much had happened since then. Luke had learned the truth about his and Leia's true parentage, after nearly crossing a line with Leia on accident once, and he'd helped the part of Darth Vader that was his father Anakin Skywalker return to the light and bring balance to the Force by throwing the Emperor down a reactor shaft. That one last heroic act had saved Luke's life but had cost Anakin his own. Not wanting his father's death to be in vain, Luke had proceeded to seek out and offer training to other Force-sensitive beings in the galaxy, starting with Leia.

Leia, Kyle Katarn, Corran Horn, Kam Solusar and Cilghal had only been the first of many to fill the ranks of Luke's New Jedi Order. They then went on to train others and gradually the Jedi Order grew stronger. Then the Yuuzhan Vong invaded.

To call the years between the Battle of Endor and the invasion of the Yuuzhan Vong peaceful would've been a lie, but the mop up operations with the New Republic taking Coruscant, the skirmishes with Warlord Zsinj and Ysanne Isard, even Grand Admiral Thrawn's campaign paled in comparison to the sheer horror of the Yuuzhan Vong war. The seriousness of the situation started when the Vong had used one of their Dovin Basals, creatures that created a gravity field, to pull down the planet Sernpidal's moon. Even though the Dovin Basal had been located and destroyed, it had been too late as the moon was already on collision course with the planet. Han, Chewbacca and Han's son Anakin had done their best to help with the evacuation but Anakin had gotten left behind by accident. Chewbacca had quickly run out to save him and get him safely back onto the _Falcon_ , but hadn't made it in time himself. Both Han and Anakin had taken Chewbacca's death very personally and for a time, it seemed as if Han was leaving Leia. Fortunately, their marriage held and he returned to her, more ready than ever to defeat the Yuuzhan Vong. Then not long after, another tragedy struck, as Anakin fell in battle after saving an entire group of young Jedi and killing the queen of the genetically engineered Voxyn, which the Yuuzhan Vong had bred specifically to hunt down Jedi. Jacen was captured and for months, it looked as though Leia had lost both her sons that day until Jacen finally returned, though his philosophy and worldviews had been drastically changed by his imprisonment and his strange relationship with the being known as Vergere. A former Jedi of the pre-Clone Wars era Republic, Vergere had gone to Zonamma Sekot after hearing about a skirmish with mysterious beings called the 'Far Outsiders' and had allegedly disappeared, though in actuality she'd been captured by the Yuuzhan Vong's scouts and gradually grew into a part of their infrastructure. Prior to that, she had briefly encountered and learned from Darth Sidious, though the extent of that tutelage Luke didn't know. Vergere had healed Luke's wife Mara Jade from a deadly disease the Yuuzhan Vong had developed and shortly afterwards, Mara found herself with child. Luke's son, Ben.

The war had ended shortly afterwards, but the changes Jacen had gone through became more and more visible as the years passed. He'd grown more introverted, more stoic. He'd gone on a personal journey out into the wild space and the Unknown Regions for a few years after the war ended and when he came back, he was...different. Yet for some reason, he had been the only one to ever truly reach Ben and became his unofficial master. Then Jacen had finally cracked and turned to the Dark Side. It took months for it to become clear, but after he killed Mara, it became obvious that Han and Leia's son Jacen had been consumed by the new identity of Darth Caedus. After causing a civil war that nearly destroyed the Galactic Alliance, Caedus was finally stopped when his twin sister Jaina stabbed him through the heart and in his final moments, Jacen emerged once more to warn his former lover Tenel Ka and his daughter Allana of impending danger.

Later, Luke and Ben had encountered Jacen's spirit when they traveled Beyond Shadows and he revealed something to them that chilled them to the bone. He'd turned to the Dark Side because he'd seen a vision of the future and desperately wanted to change it. He saw the Dark Man, sitting on the Throne of Balance. But it wasn't the sight of the Dark Man that had scared him, but the fact that his daughter had been standing by his side. Jacen's meddling with destiny, with set events, had resulted in the release of Abeloth, the Bringer of Chaos, and it had taken quite a lot to defeat her. Fortunately, even after all the sacrifices made to defeat her, including having the Jedi Order permanently leave Coruscant, it seemed that Jacen's actions had indeed changed the timeline. The vision of the future shown in the Pool of Knowledge now showed Allana as a Jedi Queen, sitting on the Throne of Balance while surrounded by watchful Jedi Knights. Perhaps, destiny could, in fact, be altered.

 _Hmm. Difficult to see. Always in motion is the future._ Those had been the words of Master Yoda and they had never held as much weight for Luke as they did now.  
During their journey to retrace Jacen's steps, he and Ben had encountered the Lost Tribe of the Sith and had brokered an uneasy alliance with them, taking one of them hostage as insurance. That someone had been Vestara Khai, a teenaged Sith apprentice and daughter to the Sith Saber Luke dealt with the most. Ben had fallen in love with Vestara and for the briefest moment, it seemed as if she was sincere in wanting to defect to the Jedi, even being forced to kill her own father who had been infected by Abeloth. But then, she had turned around and stabbed them in the back during the battle with the Lost Tribe in the Jedi Temple and had resisted arrest on Abeloth's Planet following Abeloth's defeat, ecaping with her Sith meditation vessel, Ship. Luke was convinced the Dark Woman he saw in his visions had to be Vestara. It simply couldn't be anyone else.

"Master Luke!"

Luke was snapped out of his musings by the ever exasperated tone of C-3PO. The golden protocol droid made its way into the room, his servos squeaking ever so slightly. He was getting old and even oil and grease couldn't keep him up to standards forever.

"What is it, 3PO?" Luke asked softly as he smiled at his old friend.

"The medical droids have come back with a prognosis! It's... Oh, sir! It's not looking good!"

Luke frowned. He didn't need to know the medical report. He could sense it in the Force. Regardless of what Master Cilghal had done as the Jedi's primary healer, there was nothing to be done. Leia Organa Solo, Jedi Knight, former Princess of Alderaan, and former Senator and Chief of State of the New Republic, was dying.

* * *

Gallius Rax stood on the bridge of the _Inferno_ and smirked as he looked out the viewport on the planet below. Armitage couldn't have guessed what he was thinking at that moment, the man was impossible to read. As much a mystery to the young lieutenant commander as that mysterious Force that the Jedi and so-called Sith spent all their days obsessing over.

Rather than a traditional Imperial general's uniform, Rax wore a pair of formal gray pants, black boots, an Imperial officer's undershirt and over it a short-sleeved black jacket made from genuine bantha leather with a general's insignia sewn in, complete with a pair of black gloves. He had a curious blue streak in his his otherwise graying black hair and wore a pair of goggles that seemed to resemble antiquated sunglasses. Armitage had never seen him without those goggles.

"You're wondering what we're hoping to achieve, aren't you, Lieutenant Commander Hux?" Rax asked, his voice smooth and raspy at the same time. His voice sent chills down Armitage's spine and he swallowed.

"Yes, sir, I am."

"Look at this dust ball," Rax said, gesturing to the planet below, "and tell me what you think."

Armitage wondered whether it was a trick question. "It just looks like any old desert planet to me, sir. A desolate wasteland hardly worth a second glance, only good for waste disposal."

"Indeed. Tell me, Armitage, where were you born?"

"Bastion, sir."

"A true Imperial, born in luxury at the heart of the Empire. Well, what's left of it." Rax sighed and looked out at the desert planet Jakku with what seemed like nostalgia. "I was born here, at the edge of Wild Space. I grew up in that inhospitable environment and learned a valuable lesson; if you want something, you have to be willing to fight and kill for it. Take our glorious Empire, for example. Fel turned it into a democracy, open to aliens and all sorts of inferior beings."

So that's where this was going? Rax was simply a bigoted old man who couldn't let go of the Tarkin doctrine?

"I have no problems with aliens, of course," Rax went on. "No more than I do humans. But the insistence that every voice should be heard and no action should be taken unless the majority agrees... That caused the downfall of all three incarnations of the Republic and nearly resulted in Grand Admiral Thrawn decimating the New Republic when it was in its infancy. No, what the galaxy needs is to be united under one ruler, one voice."

"So you wish to be Emperor?"

Rax chuckled softly and shook his head.

"I am content with merely being a consultant. My time as leader is coming to an end." He turned to Armitage and a grin stretched across his face. "Yours will soon be at hand."


	6. Chapter 6

_Taris_

"Here's to another successful mission!" Snap said as they all raised their glasses. Rogue Squadron had finally been granted this paid leave after a brief altercation with a small First Order cell on Taris and now they all sat in a shady cantina, sipping on Corellian ale (because Tarisian ale tasted like crap, no matter what the locals said). Syal joined in on the toast, but kept her eyes on her comlink. She was expecting an important call.

"So, Rogue Leader, what do you say?"

"Huh?"

She looked up and saw Poe Dameron leaning toward her with a sly smirk.

"Do you want to... You know... _fly_ with me tonight?"

Syal chuckled and shook her head. "I told you, it was a one-time deal."

Poe threw his hands up in a defeated gesture, smiling. "Okay, but if you change your mind, you know where to find me."

Syal giggled and shook her head. "You should go after Paige. I'm sure you two would hit it off."

Poe glanced over at Paige Tico standing by the bar and then turned his gaze more to the right.

"I think I have a better idea," he said as he began walking off towards a Twi'Lek girl sitting by the bar. Syal watched with a grin as Poe began hitting on the female only for her human boyfriend to show up. For a second there, it looked as though Poe was about to get his rear kicked. Then, to everyone's surprise (everyone's but Syal's, who knew Poe well), Poe ended up with his arms around both the boyfriend and girlfriend and walked out with a satisfied grin. That poor girl, she was about to become the third wheel that night.

* * *

_Where the hell is she?_

Ben sighed as he waited at the rendezvous point they'd agreed on. He'd arrived ten minutes later than planned and had set up an entire apology speech in his head, but his cousin was nowhere to be seen. R9-K5 waited with him, staring at him with his photoreceptor.

"Sorry I'm late," said a voice behind him suddenly and Ben nearly jumped. Somehow, he'd been too bored to sense their presence.

"It's been an hour, Jai-"

But it wasn't Jaina. The curly, blond hair, the still-youthful face, the scars on the forehead. It was Tahiri Veila. Tahiri had been in love with Ben's cousin Anakin Solo in their youth and had never really gotten over his death. When Anakin's older brother Jacen became the Sith Lord Darth Caedus, he'd manipulated Tahiri's emotions by using the Force power of Flow Walking to constantly bring her back to her last moments with Anakin and turned her into his apprentice...and supposedly something more, though Ben preferred not to dwell on that. As Darth Caedus' apprentice, she'd murdered the Imperial Grand Admiral Gilad Pellaeon when he refused to let the Empire support Caedus in the Second Galactic Civil War. When Tahiri had been interrogating Ben after Caedus captured him, Ben had been able to get through to her and turned her back to the light, but Tahiri felt too ashamed of her actions to ever return to the Jedi Order. Now, she walked her own path. So why was she here instead of Jaina?

"Where's-?" Ben began but Tahiri interrupted him.

"Jaina's resting, like we've been trying to get her to do all kriffing year. Master Sebatyne was finally able to talk her into sitting this mission out."

"Ah." Ben felt his face going as red as his hair from embarrassment. How could he not have guessed that? Between taking care of little Jacen and being on the Jedi Council, Jaina had her hands so full it was a wonder she didn't just have a nervous breakdown. Who was he to judge her for wanting to sit this one out?

"But I've reviewed your report and I must say... You need rest too, kid. You've been at this for months!"

Ben shrugged. "Just doing my duty."

Tahiri didn't look convinced as she cocked her head, looking at him with concern. "Ben, have you looked in a mirror lately? You look like bantha _poodoo_."

She wasn't wrong there. He had a small stubble of beard on his face and his red hair had grown to shoulder-length, much longer than he'd ever let it grow before.

"It's more than that, though," Tahiri went on. "You're still thinking about her, aren't you?"

Ben stayed silent, frowning. He'd thought for sure he'd be able to mask his feelings from her. Evidently, he didn't do it well enough.

"It's personal."

"Ben, as the leading expert on not letting past loves go, you need to move on. Please. She betrayed your trust and manipulated you. You're much better off without her," Tahiri said with such compassion in her voice. It was hard to imagine that this had been the person in charge of his torture six years before.

"Fine! But if I do, you should take your own advice!" Ben said, more angrily than he'd meant to. Realizing his mistake, he closed his eyes and began muttering "There's no emotion, there is peace", the opening words of the Jedi Code, before opening them again, much calmer now. "Sorry. Low blow."

"No, you're right. I do need to move on," Tahiri said and actually offered an understanding smile. "In fact, I've been trying to date again."

This came as a shock. Never in his life had he ever imagined Tahiri Veila actually going on a date with someone. She'd just never seemed like that kind of person, though he had heard rumors about her wilder side from her late teens and early twenties. From the way he'd heard it, he'd imagined the partying had been her coping mechanism after the traumas of losing Anakin and being experimented on by the Yuuzhan Vong.

"So what's his name?" Ben asked, curious now.

" _Her_ name is none of your business, kid," Tahiri said, but offered a playful wink and a smirk. Ben knew not to press for answers, but merely offered a smile in return. Today was just full of surprises.

* * *

"Didn't expect you Rogues to show up here."

Syal had been so close to drifting to sleep at the counter that she jumped at the sound of the bartender's familiar voice.

"Snap's certainly having fun, but you seem bored. How about a drink on me, sis?"

Syal looked up at the bartender and blinked several times. Makeup, a wig, contact lenses with a different eye color. And behind the disguise...

"Miri? What are you doing here?" Syal whispered, not wanting to blow her younger sister's cover.

Miri Antilles lowered her tone and her expression grew more serious. "Wraith Squadron got intel on potential First Order recruitments on Taris, located around this area. Not surprising, this part of the planet has always been notorious for having xenophobic, human-centric values. The GA sent us to check it out."

"Anything we can do to help?"

"For now, continue partying, don't blow our cover. I'll let you know if I need your help." Her tone then softened and she smiled. "But it's good to see you, Syal. Been way too long."

Syal nodded and smiled softly in return. " _Way_ too long. After your mission is over, we really ought to-"

Her voice trailed off as her holocom started beeping. Frowning, she glanced up at her sister.

"I really need to take this. See you later. Raincheck on that drink."

Miri nodded and smiled, shaking her head. She'd made sure no one was around to hear their conversation. To anyone looking their way, it would've looked like any normal chat between a drinker and a bartender. As for anyone who could've been listening in, any recording devices would end up damaged upon playback, because if there was one thing Wraith Squadron knew, it was espionage and counter-espionage, and Miri always kept with her a portable signal scrambler.

"Okay, okay, I'm coming," Syal said as the com continued beeping before finally shutting it off as she made her way to an alleyway a few blocks from the club. A hooded figure stood there and waited for her.

"Did anyone follow you?"

"Of course not, you think the leader of Rogue Squadron and the daughter of a spy would let herself get trailed?" Syal asked with a scoff and a smirk. "I'm guessing you didn't either, right?"

"We're completely alone," the other woman confirmed as she pulled back the hood and let the rain fall on her curly blond hair.

"Good," Syal said with a soft smile as she stepped closer to her, taking the woman's hand. "I've been waiting for you all night."

"Had to do an errand for an old friend. But now you have me all to yourself, Syal Antilles," the woman said as she wrapped her arms around Syal's neck and pulled her in closer.

"Good," Syal repeated as her lips met Tahiri's.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Took me a while to update, I know, might take a while until the next chapter arrives. Hope you like it and I just wanted everyone to know that the story is most definitely not dead.


	7. Chapter 7

_Imperial Research Station, Jakku_

  
Armitage looked around as he followed General Rax into the base. He'd had no idea this research station was even here, despite his intense studying of Imperial assets during his days in the academy. Then again, those records barely mentioned Jakku at all and contained no mention of the Emperor's Dark Empire or his station on Byss so perhaps they weren't very reliable. Palpatine had plenty of secrets, that was for sure.

"Sir, permission to speak freely?"

If the black-clad personal guards Rax had with him, the aptly-named 'Death Troopers', had any objections, they certainly didn't speak up. Rax merely smiled and nodded.

"Of course, Lieutenant Commander."

"General Rax, sir... What is this place?"

Rax laughed softly, or as close to softly as his raspy voice let him. "Why this is my home. For years, this was where I served our glorious Empire. Out of the way, away from the influence of the beaurocratic fools that plagued everything else. Palpatine entrusted his Jakku observatory to me. At first, it was just random weapons-testing. But then..."

Armitage waited expectantly but the General simply offered a mischievous smirk. They entered an enormous, cavernous chamber and stepped onto a walkway.

Looking down, Armitage's eyes widened when he realized what he was looking at. The chamber was a vehicle hangar. 30 AT-ATs, 40 AT-STs and what looked like a prototype of a new walker twice the size of an AT-AT. Stormtroopers and technicians were walking about, calibrating systems and inspecting their vehicles.

"What is all this?"

"Surely you didn't think Byss was the only contingency Palpatine had?" Rax asked with a smirk on his face.

"You telling me you have more clones of the Emperor?" Armitage asked, astonished, but Rax simply laughed and shook his head.

"Of course not. That fool wasted all his clones decades ago, despite all I did to help him set his little Dark Empire up. But there are some secrets the New Republic, Thrawn and all those other troublemakers never found. Over the years, I began gathering some of them up. This old research station was easily turned into a staging ground. But by the time I'd set up operations here, Pellaeon had already stepped up as Grand Admiral of the Empire and the New Republic was too strong. Then, after the war with the Yuuzhan Vong, the Jedi Jacen Solo plunged the galaxy into chaos. That was when I could finally begin. Finding allies, then recruiting foot soldiers."

That was when Armitage noticed that among the Stormtroopers were other soldiers wearing cadet uniforms. His eyes widened when he realized something. Those weren't just young cadets from the Eadu Academy. They were children, barely 8 or 9 years old.

"It was easy," Rax said, "in a war zone, who's going to miss a few orphans?"

* * *

"Happy Life Day," the voices of cheerful pedestrians said to one another as Vestara made her way through the streets of Taris.

Life Day. They'd had a similar thing on Kesh, of course. The Festival of Midwinter. Yes, even Sith had their own version of the peaceful winter holidays that seemed to be common on most civilized planets. They weren't savages ruled entirely by their hate as the Jedi seemed to think they were. Well, not _all_ the time.

So it seemed Life Day was approaching. Once a tradition unique to Kashyyyk, the concept of Life Day had taken over a similar holiday celebrated by most of the Core and Mid-Rim worlds following Kashyyyk's integration into the Republic millennia ago, though each planet celebrated it in its own way. On some worlds, it was the middle of the winter season, and so it was celebrated via creations of snowmen of all shapes and sizes. But wherever you went, you'd find colorful lights, joyful singing in every language imaginable in the galaxy and people getting trampled trying to buy each other Life Day presents. What was it about this time of year that made everyone want to buy their presents personally rather than simply make the purchase via the HoloNet like they did with everything else?

Vestara shook her head as she kept walking. The Sith are making their move? That is what Ship said, though she had no idea what he meant by that.

She'd barely entered the town square when she thought she saw someone out the corner of her eye. No, it couldn't be. She did a double take and there he was, stepping into an alleyway. Her heart began beating faster. What was _he_ doing here? She pulled her hood up to conceal her face, hoping he hadn't noticed her.

* * *

Ben had been contemplating Tahiri's words since their conversation. Should he give the search up? Let go, return home and let someone else pick up the search for Mortis? After all, this wasn't about finding the Mortis Monolith. Not really. It was about her.

He stepped into the town square and admired the enormous tree in the middle of the square. It was no Wroshyr tree, but it was quite tall for a Tarisian pine tree and it was decorated with lights in all colors. He couldn't help but admire the work that had gone into the decorating. How many beings wouldn't find it cheaper to just set up a holographic projector to give off the hologram of a giant Tree of Life rather than actually planting and decorating one by hand? Yet, here it was.  
It had been so long since he'd actually taken the time to enjoy Life Day. Time was, he and his parents would celebrate it together every year. Then, tragedy had struck, as his cousin Jacen murdered Ben's mother. After that, all thoughts of Life Day had just evaporated from young Ben's mind. Seeing the tree now, he found himself missing her once again.

The feeling came like a twitch at first. A small unrest in the Force. Potential danger.

Glancing up and following the feeling, he first noticed the cloaked man stepping into a shadowy alleyway. The man radiated with the Dark Side.

As Ben moved to follow him, he thought he felt another presence. One whose anxiety was through the roof. _Ves?_ The feeling of danger sense continued to grow, but emanated not from the alley or the woman he thought he'd spotted, but from the tree.

With a loud _bang_ , the tree exploded. An undamaged holographic projector next to the burning stump of the tree activated and a red hologram of a black sun inside a hexagon appeared. The First Order had done this.


End file.
